‘He could have to leave Spurs to become world class’

Former Manchester United and Everton player Phil Neville, who was summariser for Tottenham’s win over Borussia Dortmund on BBC Radio 5 live:

He could have to leave Spurs to become that top, top world class Robert Lewandowski-type player.

If Spurs maintain being a top-four team, that will not be good enough for Harry Kane.

I think he needs to be challenging for Ballon d’Ors. I think he needs to be challenging for Champions Leagues and if Spurs are always going to be that “nearly team”, eventually he will want to leave and join a Real Madrid or a Barcelona.

There will always be a doubt about Harry Kane until he gets to that level.

Ballon d’Or winners since 2008

2008

Cristiano Ronaldo

2009-2012

Lionel Messi

2013-2014

Cristiano Ronaldo

2015

Lionel Messi

2016

Cristiano Ronaldo

The Ballon d’Or puts you up to greatness, it puts you up on that pedestal to be the best.

I think Cristiano Ronaldo’s main goal in life now, Lionel Messi’s maybe as well, is to win the Ballon d’Or as it shows they are the best in the world.

Kane has the killer instinct of [ex-Netherlands striker] Ruud van Nistelrooy. He runs around and bullies defenders like Diego Costa. He is the most complete centre-forward I have seen for some time.

All centre-forwards are selfish. Van Nistelrooy used to punch the shower and rip the shower head off if he hadn’t scored.

Kane has got that but he also has that other side where he is an unbelievable team player.

‘If Soldado had been any good we may not have seen him’

Harry Kane is the first Englishman since Wayne Rooney in 2010 to score in three consecutive Champions League appearances

Sports writer Paul Jiggins, who contributed to BBC Radio 5 live special ‘The Making of Harry Kane’:

He is very ambitious and very determined to get to the top. I don’t think he is quite in the top echelon of European footballers. I would say, though, he is probably in the four or five top strikers. He is certainly England’s top striker.

The first goal he scored against Dortmund epitomised his career. All this has been done through hard work. It is not something that came naturally to him. He has worked at his career, worked at his game and taken a lot of knocks.

He was sent out on loan and there were worries about whether he would make it at Premier League level.

If Roberto Soldado [who scored seven goals in 52 Premier League games for Spurs between 2013 and 2015] had been any good we may never have seen Harry Kane in the Premier League.

He was third-choice striker at Spurs that season and battled up from there. Every obstacle that has been put in his way, he has battled past it.

Bulldozing through those defenders, that was work, but what he also has is class and we saw that with his fantastic finish. He is only going to get better.

You wonder, if he is happy to play for Spurs for the rest of his career, that may hold him back. He may never be seen as one of Europe’s best unless he moves abroad in the future. If he wants to do that he may have to test himself in one of the other European leagues.

He will maybe end up doing what Glenn Hoddle did [who left Spurs to join Monaco]. When he feels he has done everything he can at Spurs – who are his first love – I think he will move on.

I don’t think Tottenham fans will begrudge him that so long as they get the best of him between now and then.

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